Topic: Test Drive: 2017 Nissan Versa Note SV

[AutoTrader.ca]

Hits above its weight.
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[Noto]

I recall really liking the Versa Note in our last comparo with it - the infotainment system is really decent for the price point, the powertrain not bad, and the suspension/handling was better than expected.

Your writer also longed for a covered center storage bin, though I was happy to find a fold-down arm-rest, which is a feature missing from many a little car in this segment. If you have arms, which you probably do, you’ll appreciate its presence on the daily.

I agree with this.  In fact, most don't offer an armrest because it makes the cabin seem smaller, and apparently costs money to make

Even the CX-3 is devoid of an armrest (still!) and it can reach into the high $30,000s!!

Overall, this is a really good option in the segment, the others of which I would consider are the Rio5 and the Fit to some extent, though the latter gets kinda pricey and I'm not sure if Honda put a volume knob back in it yet

[johngenx]

Honda's volume slider thing is horrid.  Just horrid.

[Noto]

Honda's volume slider thing is horrid.  Just horrid.

To be fair, in amazing Honda fashion, loud voices decrying such issues have been dealt with quickly - the new CRV has a knob - so, too, may the next Fit refresh/redesign.

[dkaz]

The Odyssey got a knob too. I very very very rarely use the knob anymore though, I love my steering wheel controls. Having to take my hand off the steering wheel to reach for a volume control on the dash feels like distracted driving.

On the note of distracted driving, I remember using my rental 2016 Corolla's touchscreen and thought to myself man this is totally distracted driving, but it's legal.

[Noto]

The Odyssey got a knob too. I very very very rarely use the knob anymore though, I love my steering wheel controls. Having to take my hand off the steering wheel to reach for a volume control on the dash feels like distracted driving.

On the note of distracted driving, I remember using my rental 2016 Corolla's touchscreen and thought to myself man this is totally distracted driving, but it's legal.

Rental, yes - you're not familiar with it.  Eventually, people get to be.

[dkaz]

The Odyssey got a knob too. I very very very rarely use the knob anymore though, I love my steering wheel controls. Having to take my hand off the steering wheel to reach for a volume control on the dash feels like distracted driving.

On the note of distracted driving, I remember using my rental 2016 Corolla's touchscreen and thought to myself man this is totally distracted driving, but it's legal.

Rental, yes - you're not familiar with it.  Eventually, people get to be.

Familiar or not, there's no way searching for a song on a touch screen display on the dash is less distracting than on a phone.

[Noto]

The Odyssey got a knob too. I very very very rarely use the knob anymore though, I love my steering wheel controls. Having to take my hand off the steering wheel to reach for a volume control on the dash feels like distracted driving.

On the note of distracted driving, I remember using my rental 2016 Corolla's touchscreen and thought to myself man this is totally distracted driving, but it's legal.

Rental, yes - you're not familiar with it.  Eventually, people get to be.

Familiar or not, there's no way searching for a song on a touch screen display on the dash is less distracting than on a phone.

I agree, but not as bad as texting/web browsing.

[Fobroader]

The Odyssey got a knob too. I very very very rarely use the knob anymore though, I love my steering wheel controls. Having to take my hand off the steering wheel to reach for a volume control on the dash feels like distracted driving.

On the note of distracted driving, I remember using my rental 2016 Corolla's touchscreen and thought to myself man this is totally distracted driving, but it's legal.

Rental, yes - you're not familiar with it.  Eventually, people get to be.

Familiar or not, there's no way searching for a song on a touch screen display on the dash is less distracting than on a phone.

This is what I don't get....how is a built in touch screen any different from a tablet?? Is it because its mounted??

[dkaz]

I think that's basically it. One is integral to the vehicle and the other is a hand held device.

[rrocket]

I agree, but not as bad as texting/web browsing.

You can look at the FARS registry and see more people die while fiddling with the radio than texting.  The NHTSA also has some studies that back this up..showing that in states with bans on texting, death rates didn't go down.

And while older, this infographic says 39 people (in 2011) died while texting.  Or about .12% of fatal accidents.  In 2015, the last year of study, "distracted driving" as a whole killed 3,477 total.  Or about the same number as in 2011.  I'm too lazy to look for the 2015 infographic.

Yes, texting while driving is stupid though....but appears to be less dangerous (fatality-wise) than other forms of distracted driving.

[draghon]

Are those statistics similar if you look at the total number of collisions instead of just collisions resulting in fatalities?

[rrocket]

Are those statistics similar if you look at the total number of collisions instead of just collisions resulting in fatalities?

I'd have to go and look.  But even a "collision" can be a misnomer.  A simple no injury fender-bender is a "collision".

Maybe injury accidents would be better?

[Solstice2006]

The Odyssey got a knob too. I very very very rarely use the knob anymore though, I love my steering wheel controls. Having to take my hand off the steering wheel to reach for a volume control on the dash feels like distracted driving.

On the note of distracted driving, I remember using my rental 2016 Corolla's touchscreen and thought to myself man this is totally distracted driving, but it's legal.

I don't like the audio buttons on the steering wheel of the GC.  They are behind the steering wheel, not labelled.  The volume buttons, the seek, and I think the AM/FM.  And since I move from 3 vehicles all week, I can't remember which button does what.  So I just use the regular buttons. 

[Noto]

The Odyssey got a knob too. I very very very rarely use the knob anymore though, I love my steering wheel controls. Having to take my hand off the steering wheel to reach for a volume control on the dash feels like distracted driving.

On the note of distracted driving, I remember using my rental 2016 Corolla's touchscreen and thought to myself man this is totally distracted driving, but it's legal.

I don't like the audio buttons on the steering wheel of the GC.  They are behind the steering wheel, not labelled.  The volume buttons, the seek, and I think the AM/FM.  And since I move from 3 vehicles all week, I can't remember which button does what.  So I just use the regular buttons.

If you don't know what they do they're not great, but once you get used to them (about half hour of sitting in your driveway playing) you'll grow to appreciate them a lot and the reduced clutter they provide.

[Great_Big_Abyss]

Yup.  MOST people use one vehicle as their daily most of the time.  You get used to the layout of the buttons.  My Grand Caravan (DGC) has the same button layout as your JGC.  Didn't take me long to get used to.

[dkaz]

I found out by accident that my old 99 Sienna had volume and mode controls behind the steering wheel. Just three buttons, not much to learn.

I don't mind the keyboard on the steering wheel look though.

Yup.  MOST people use one vehicle as their daily most of the time.  You get used to the layout of the buttons.  My Grand Caravan (DGC) has the same button layout as your JGC.  Didn't take me long to get used to.

Yea it's all about getting used to it. I don't forget that automatics don't have clutch pedals anymore! 

[tortoise]

Yeah, the mashing of the brake pedal always catches people off guard. It happened most when coming to a stop.

There were a few of those with the truck before I got used to it.

[Noto]

The funny thing is I never really got used to the buttons in the UConnect system, but I just reviewed another car (it'll come out soon, I hope), and it had rear-mounted buttons that I found incredibly useful.  Like, really, really useful.  I loved them.

[tortoise]

It's almost like they placed the buttons where your fingers usually reside.